MMM! once again returns to the cosmic with this week’s spotlight hopeful for Marvel Legends: Quasar.
Last week’s poll re-cap: With 69% of the vote, you chose Whirlwind ver. 2 (sawblades) as the version of the character you most want made for Marvel Legends. Whirlind ver. 1 came in a severely distant second with 10%.
Make My Marvel! – Quasar
Wendell Vaughn was a security guard at Stark Industries during the development of the Quantum Bands, powerful wrist bands that can harness electromagnetic energies into nearly anything the wearer imagines. After the terrorist orginization AIM attacked and the bands’ original test subject managed to incinerate himself, Vaughn attempted to keep the bands safe by wearing them himself. He was able to quickly learn the basics of the bands’ powers and fend off the AIM agents.
Calling himself Quasar, Vaughn was immediately recruited by SHIELD to their superhero agent test program. He received intensive training during this period. The program was soon disbanded when it was revealed that several of it’s members were double agents. Quasar next became head of security for the secret government program Project: Pegasus. Things turned south when the project’s staff, including Quasar, were possessed by an evil entity. They were eventually freed from the influence of the Serpent Crown and the project was saved, though Quasar blamed himself for the events. He put his superhero career on hiatus and returned home.
Vaughn’s father was able to talk him out his funk and convinced him to continue to explore his powers by traveling into space. Upon leaving Earth’s orbit, Quasar immediately went into a 4-year coma and, upon waking, found himself far across the galaxy. He was saved from the alien Deathurge by the entity Eon. Eon was convinced that Quasar showed all the necessary qualities to take the late Captain Marvel’s place as the universe’s protector. He returned Quasar to Earth, where Vaughn started his own security firm as a cover for his activities.
When a psychic being known as the Over-mind emerged, it was Quasar’s control of the Quantum bands that saved him from the alien’s influence. With the help of Hyperion and the Stranger, he was able to defeat Over-mind and, in the process, help save the Watchers from willing themselves out of existence. Quasar returned to Earth to continue to protect Eon from an unknown threat. He soon learned that his father had died several months prior and that Eon had been animating his corpse. Horrified and betrayed, Quasar shunned the living planet.
It was a this point that the mysterious threat revealed itself as Maelstrom, who attacked and killed Quasar. Quasar’s consciousness, however, lived on and to keep Maelstrom from gaining cosmic awareness, he killed Eon himself. In the process, both he and Maelstrom gained a portion of Eon’s power. He was eventually able to stop Maelstrom from collapsing the universe and was rewarded with new life by Eternity, both his and that of Eon. He became mentor to Eon’s offspring, Epoch.
Quasar went on to aid the Watchers by capturing the Living Laser as he hopped between realities. In the process, Quasar encountered the "New Universe" and brought the Star Brand to the 616 reality. When he returned, Quasar and the Avengers became involved in the Kree-Shi’ar War. Using the inter-galactic hostillities as a destraction, the Skrulls were able to detonate a stolen bomb that wiped out 90% of the Kree population. Again blaming himself, Quasar began devoting more his time to policing the universe to prevent such tragedies in the future. When he later returned to Earth, he found that his old mentor, Ego, was increasing in mass to the point that it was endangering the Earth. Quasar’s solution was to contain Ego within himself, an act that forced him to exile himself from Earth should he lose control of the Quanum Bands and re-release the living planet.
Quasar next aided Nova and his army against the Annhilation wave. It was during these events that he met his end at the hands of Annhilus, who took the bands for himself. Upon Annhilus’ defeat, both the quantuum bands and Quasar moniker were passed to Phyla-Vell, the cloned daughter of the original Captain Marvel. She can currently be found in the pages of Annihilation: Conquest fighting as part of the resistance against the Phalanx while struggling with the now Annhilus-tainted Quantum Bands.
How to make it: Depending on the version chosen, this could be an easy re-paint of (most of) an existing mold. Quasar (male) did not typically appear steroid-ridden, so the Bullseye body would work with some added features (cape, bands, etc.). To make a half-way decent Phyla-Vell would call for an all-new body sculpt.
Which version of Quasar do you most want Hasbro to make?
Wendell Vaughn First Appearance/Marvel Boy Tribute
Wendell Vaughn Inifinite
Wendell Vaughn Annhilation
Phyla-Vell Annhilation
Phyla-Vell Conquest
*Some images courtesy of Comicvine*
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